i actually miss choices fandom circa 2017-2018 like the adrenaline we got from weekly endless summer/trr updates and everyone trying to collect wokens and compete in the oppression olympics...take me back
It also could have been a little more, terror filled. Could’ve been scarier, especially in the second half when the stakes were upped. Would have liked another chase.
If all the LIs had murdered at least one person that would have been goated, even if it was just self-defence.
Just finished Terror Fest, and this may be the best book PB has released in a very, very long time.
Spoilers below cut (long post for those that read)
Top scars on Zaire were a pleasant surprise. The fact that PB were consistent with their pronoun use when they’ve struggled in the past was great. Zaire got the utmost respect and love throughout.
LI’s that were actual individual people and not cardboard cutouts was a breath of fresh air. They breathed life into the story by having their own characterisation.
I wished we could have had a tangible icon to see our fortitude score. They could have reused the skull from It Lives. I would have liked to have made choices that also determined the friend group fortitude (like ILITW) and that should have determined who died and when.
The ending was a little lacklustre after the final showdown. Once Tyson was dead (the reveal was great btw), we should have had time to reconnect with our remaining friends (or mourn them). A proper epilogue would have been nice (like ILITW)
We should have been able to collect weapons and lore documents (like ILITW) to prepare for the final fight.
The reveal that it was Tyson all along was nasty work. Especially since there was an opportunity to sleep with him before the reveal that he had been in a relationship with our sister. More foreshadowing would have been nice, he should have been a little more manipulative. But overall, it was very real and very human. It just could have been a little more tense. He should have been more easy breezy.
It was a little too easy jumping into a relationship with the LI’s. There should have been some hesitation at least because the MC is their best friend / group leaders kid sister. More fleshing out of the relationships would have been nice, which would have come with a clear and more staggered timeline.
We didn’t get to see much with the detective and the mayor, but there was a lot there and more chapters would have allowed for that to have been fleshed out. The characters didn’t have time to breathe, which there should have been. A filler chapter here and there would have been fine. If PB can make 100 chapters for My Two First Loves, they can add filler into a horror story.
It also would have helped with characterisation. While there was a lot of showing, having a filler chapter where the characters got to be the friend group they kept saying they were and having more moments like the cliff jumping would have helped make me like them more and want to save them more.
I would have liked more backstory on MC and Destiny’s relationship. They clearly weren’t close but a flashback chapter to show more of that and the earlier friendship dynamic would have been nice. Not to bring up ILITW again, but the way they started those chapters with mini flashbacks helped fill out the story. More of that to flesh out the friendship dynamic and start the romance tension would have been nice. There was a reason Destiny made the no dating within the friend group rule and especially pointed out their kid sibling and it wasn’t to just be polite.
Bex was under-utilised. Sure she was definitely going to betray MC and the group but the opportunity to do a little backstabbing should have been offered. Bex’s death should’ve come after she posted an insider story or started to raise further speculation. There wasn’t a lot of investigation going on and there should have been.
The other murders. Why? They happened but they weren’t exactly explained. Did Tyson commit all of them? Who was the copy cat killer? Plot points introduced that didn’t really go anywhere because we had limited chapters and a small cast.
These are just my main points. There are others but these are at the forefront of my mind. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the book. It’s some of the best content PB has released in a very long time and it’s because it doesn’t focus on romance or sex. The LIs are their own and not customisable, which has been one of my biggest problems with PB along with poor writing, cancelling everything and making all their books about sex.
Overall, a good book. Koda is being added to my list of loves.
Individual LI’s with their own depth, back stories and characterisation? An interesting story and well thought out plot? New mechanics that serve a purpose?
Terror Fest, who art thou? Ist thou a remnant of golden age PB?
Thoroughly enjoying Terror Fest MC. They are snappy and anxious and annoyed and bitter and angry 90% of the time and I love that for them. Smashing the meanest dialogue option available every time with the satisfaction of a smoker taking a puff. Release your years of pent up younger sibling aggression, little one.
btw i'm seeing a lot of people dunk on terror fest over the killer being called stabby joe.
terror fest focuses heavily on critique of true crime sensationalism; it talks of how a horrific serial murder case was turned into a commercialized tourist attraction for halloween. the 'stabby joe' thing is meant to sound tacky and ridiculous because it plays into that and is likely a deliberate choice imo and not just cringe or whatever
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